Mesopotamian (Egyptian) Gods and
Goddesses
Adapa - The ancient ‘wise man’ or ‘sage’ of Eridu,
the reputed earliest city of Sumer. His wisdom and position had
been granted him by the god Ea (Enki). Having ‘broken the wings
of the south wind’, Adapa was summoned for punishment by the
supreme god Anu/An. The Gatekeepers of heaven interceded on his
behalf with Anu and he was offered the bread and water of eternal
life.
An (Anu) - An is the Summerian word for ‘heaven’ and is the name
of the sky god who is also the prime mover in createion and the
distant, supreme leader of the gods. Regarded as the descendant
of the god Uras, with whom he was later identified; or else as
the son of primordial Ansar and Kisar. He is the father of all
the gods. His wife is the earth goddess Uras. In a later
tradition he is married to Ki. In almost all the periods one of
the most important deities.
Ansar and Kisar - A pair of primordials respectively male and
female, perhaps representing the heaven (An) and the earth (Ki).
Anuna (Anunnakku)-The name Anuna may mean ‘princely offspring’,
in early texts it is used as a general word to mean ‘the gods’.
There are fifty ‘Anuna of Eridu’ The sky god Anu/An is described
as a king of the Annakku.
Anunitu -A Babylonian goddess especially associated with
childbirth. She became the constellation Anunitu, later referred
to the north-eastern part of Pisces.
Asag (Asakku) - A monstrous demon who id defeated by the god
Ninurta/Ningirsu. He was born frome the mating of An and Ki, and
the Asag himself mated with the kur (mountains) to produce
offspring. An Asag/asakku is a demon who attacks and kills human
beings, especially by means of head fevers, and who is mentioned
in poetical enumerations of diseases.
Asarluhi - Origianlly the god of Kuara, a village near Eridu. He
came to be associated with Enki and with magical knowledge. He
was regarded as the son of Enki and Damgalnuna, and was later
absorbed into the personality of Marduk. His name was used as an
alternative name for Marduk in magical incantations.
Assur - The god of the Assyrian nation. His symbol is believed to
be the winged disc although the symbol is also thought to be that
of the sun god Samas (Utu).This gods seals were used to endorse
documents of the utmost political importance, this wold suggest
his position as a god of the country, it’s people and certainly
it’s power and politics.
Bau - A goddess worshipped almost exclusively at Lagas, where she
was regarded as the spouse fo the god Ningirsu, or else of Zababa.
The daughter of An, she had two sons by Ningirsu, the deities
Ig-alima and Sul-sagana, as well as seven daughters (minor
goddesses of Lagas) for whom Ningirsu’s paternity was not
claimed. The correct form of her name could be Baba.
Bes - Also known as Bisu, he was the Egyptian god of play and
recreation. He is represented as a bow-legged dwarf with an
oversized head, goggle eyes, protruding tongue, bushy tail and
usually a large feathered crown as a headdress. He was a
magically protective deity who averted the power evil, and
associated with the protection of children and women in
childbirth. Some Egyptologists consider him to be of non-Egyptian
origin since he is said to have come from the ‘holy land’ (the
east, interpreted as Arabia or Babylonia) and called ‘Lord of
Puoni’ (Punt, on the African coast of the Red Sea).
Dagan - (Hebrew Dagon) a West Semitic corn god who came to be
worshipped extensively throughout the Near East, including
Mesopotamia. The common meaning of the word ‘dagan’ in Hebrew and
Ugartic is ‘grain’. According to one tradition the god Dagan was
the inventor of the plough. Dagan was regarded as the father of
the god Baal (Hadad) and second only in rank to the god El. He
was seen as a vegetation god. Sala was his wife in one tradition,
in another it was Ishara.
Damgalnuna (Damkina) - Worshipped in Lagas and Umma in the early
times and in her city of Malgum as possibly one of a number of
‘mother goddesses’. She achieved an independent personality as
the wife of Enki, they were the parents of the god Marduk.
Astrologically she is the constellation called the Wagon of
Heaven (Ursa Minor).
Damu - A god of healing who drives away demons and ‘binds the
torn sinew’. Usually regarded as the son of the goddess Ninisina
and a son of, or else identical with the god Ningiszida.
Astrologically Damu was associated with the constellation the Pig
(possibly Delphinus)
Dumuzi - A Shepherd god in a disputation with Enkimdu the god of
irrigation and cultivation. Dumuzi represents the conflicting
interests of the pastoralist. In the rite of the sacred marriage
of kings to Inana, the kings were identified with Dumuzi, who was
often her lover. When he died due to the actions of Inana, he
became a god of the underworld. Dumuzi and Ningiszida are
represented as the gatekeepers of the Heaven of Anu (An). In some
Sumerian poetry Dumuzi is also referred to as Damu.
Dumu-zi-abzu -a local goddess of the village Kinuir near Lagas.
Her name means ‘good child of the abzu’, and was sometimes
abbreviated to Dumu-zi. She has no obvious connection to the god
Dumuzi.
Enki (Ea)- The god of the subterranean freshwater ocean (abzu),
and especially associated with wisdom, magic, and incantations,
and with the arts and crafts of civilization. Sometimes called by
the names of Nudimmud or Ninsiku, or by the title ‘Stag of the
abzu’. Son of An/Anu, or else of the goddess Nammu and his wife
was Damgalnuna/Damkina, their offspring included the gods Marduk,
Asarluhi, Enbilulu, the sage Adapa and the goddess Nanse. His
minister was the ‘two-faced’ god Isimud/Usmu. Enki was seen as a
creator god and determiner of destinies. He was always seen as
favorable to mankind.
Enkimdu - The god known as ‘lord of dike and canal.’ Sometimes as
the ‘lord of dike, canal and furrow; cultivator’. A son of Enki,
he is closely identified with the god Enbilulu the ‘canal
inpsector’.
Enlil (Ellil)- One of the most important gods in the Mesopotamian
pantheon. The other gods were said not to be able to even look
upon his splendor. Sometimes known as the offspring of An and
brother of the goddess Aruru. He is also described as a
descendant of Enki and Ninki (Lord and Lady Earth), not connected
with the god Enki. His wife is Ninlil or (Sud). His children are
the goddess Inana and the gods Adad (Iskur), Nanna-Suen, Nergal,
Ninurta/Ningirsu, Pabilsag, Nusku, Utu (Samas), Uras, Zababa and
Ennugi. Nusku is Enlil’s minister.
Enmesarra - A god connected with the underworld. Seven (or
sometimes eight) minor deities were regarded as his children. An
ancestor of the god Enlil and a primeval deity.
Ennugi - The god who has special care over dikes and canals, he
is called the ‘canal inspector of the great gods’. Regarded as
the son of Enlil, and sometimes Enmesarra, his wife was Nanibgal.
Enzag - One of the gods created by the union of Enki and
Ninhursaga.
Ereskigal - Her name can be translated into ‘Queen of the Great
Below’. She is known in Akkadian as Allatu. She is the goddess
who rules the underworld, mother of the goddess Nungal and by
Enlil, of the god Namtar who serves as her minister and
messenger. Sister of Inana and wife of the god Nergal. She lived
in a palace located at Ganzir the doorway to the underworld,
protected by the seven gates, all of which could be bolted and
each of which was guarded by a porter.
Galla - One of many underworld demons who are especially
responsible for hauling unfortunate humans off to the underworld.
Often mentioned among the seven types of evil demons, the galla
are said themselves to number seven. Like most demons or spirits
the gallas could exist in a favorable form too.
Gatumdug - Goddess of the city-state of Lagas and like Bau with
whom she was later equated, she was regarded as a daughterof An.
Sometimes called ‘Mother of Lagas’ or ‘Mother who founded Lagas’.
Gudea addresses Gatumdug as both mother and father in one of the
tales and asks for the protection of her favorable udug and lama
deities.
Genies - Some are minor deities, others may be human. Most
represent the Seven Sages in human guise and as such, are not
mortal.
Gestinana - The goddess who was the faithful sister of Dumuzi and
like him, a child of the sheep goddess Duttur. Thought of as an
‘old woman’, an interpreter of dreams, as ‘Mother Gestinana’.
Equated sometimes with the goddess Belet-seri “Lady of the open
countryside’.
Gibil (Girra) - Gibil or Girra (Akkadian girru) is deified fire.
Viewed as god, Girra was thought to be a son of Anu (An) and the
goddess Sala. He represented fire in all its aspects, both
destructive and creative.
Gidim - The spirit of a dead person, living in the underworld,
who must be propitiated and revered. They are not in general
happy and regular funerary offerings of food and drink must be
made to them. If not fed, they can become restless and haunt the
living. The gidim are also ghosts who return from the underworld
to persecute the living. They might enter the body through the
ear. Some were deliberately raised by necromancers to be
questioned about the future and so forth.
Griffin - Obviously the creature had some religious significance,
possibly magically protective, but its precise associations are
not known.
Griffin demon- They were explained as representations of the
Seven Sages, and groups of seven figurines of them were used as
foundation deposits to protect houses and palaces. Mentioned as
‘Guardians of the Gate’.
Gula - The goddess whose name means ‘great’ was a healing goddess
who understands disease. A patroness of doctors. Worshipped also
under the names of Nintinuga, Ninkarrak, and Meme, originally the
names of other goddesses; and as Ninsina, ‘Lady of Isin.’ The
wife of Ninurta or Pabilsag, or else of the minor vegetation god
Abu. Mother of the Healing God Damu and of the god Ninazu also
associated with healing.
Huwawa (Humbaba) - Guardian of the Cedar Forest. A giant
protected by seven layers of terrifying radiance. Perhaps a
formof the Elamite god Humban.
Igigu - The name from the Old Babylonian Period for the (ten)
‘great gods’. Generally used to refer to the gods of heaven
collectively. In the Epic of creation it is said that there are
300 Igigu of heaven.
Ilaba - A god whose worship was briefly but importantly prominent
during the Akkadian Period. Known as a warrior god and the
personal deity of the kings of that dynasty.
Imdugud (Anzu) - A monstrous bird called Anzu in Akkadian. Its
name can also mean ‘fog’ or ‘mist’. It caused whirlwinds and
sandstorms by flapping its wings. It steals the tablet of
destinies from Enki in the Sumerian version, from Enlil in the
Akkadian.
Inana (Istar)- The goddess was the most important female deity of
ancient Mesopotamia at ALL periods. Her Sumerian name Inana is
probably derived from a presumed Nin-ana, “Lady of Heaven”, it
also occurs as Innin. The Syrian goddess Astarte (biblical
Ashtoreth) is later undoubtedly connected to her. The daughter of
An and closely connected to the city of Uruk. According to
another tradition she is the daughter of the moon god Nanna (sin)
and sister of the sun god Utu (Samas). She is also regarded as
the daughter of Enlil or even of Enki in variant traditions.
Inana’s sister was Ereskigal, queen of the underworld. Her
minister was the goddess Ninsubur. She never has a permanent male
spouse in any tradition. Even Dumuzi who is often described as
her lover has a very ambiguous relationship with her and she is
ultimately responsible for his death. One of her aspects is a
goddess of love and sexual behavior, especially extramarital sex.
She is not a goddess of marriage, nor is she a mother goddess.
Her second aspect is that of a war goddess who is fond of battle,
which is proverbially described as the ‘playground of Istar.’
Violent and lusting for power she stands by kings as they fight.
The third aspect is as the planet Venus, the morning and the
evening star. ‘I am Inana of the sunrise’ she declares in Inana’s
Descent to the Underworld. In this form she is sometimes known as
Ninsianna.
Isimud - A minor god who functions as a minister to Enki/Ea.
Messenger for the god. His name may mean ‘with two faces’.
Ishara - A goddess who seems to have come from the Semitic
tradition into Mesopotamia from the Middle Euphrates region.
Associated with Dagan, possibly as a wife. A goddess of love, she
is equated with Istar (Inana) and in other guises she is
associated with war and with extispicy (the liver lungs or colon
spiral from a freshly slaughtered animal are examined for
divinatory purposes). She appears to have been a mother goddess.
Associated with the underworld.
Iskur (Adad)- The god who embodied the power of storms. The
Akkadian equivalent was Adad. The son of An in one tradition but
in older traditions, he is seen as the son of Enlil. His wife was
the goddess Sala but she is also said to have been the wife of
Dagan.
Istaran - Local god of the town of Der, located on the border
between Mesopotamia and Elam, east of the Tigris. His wife wsa
known simply as Sarrat-Deri, Queen of Der and his minister was
the snake god Nirah.. Most likely a god of justice as well.
Isum - A popular if not very important god known from the early
Dynastic Period onwards. May have bee connected with the Sumerian
god Hendursag with whom he shared a wife, the goddess Ninmug.
Benevolent, protective night watchman, and a herald. Associated
with the underworld and the god Erra. Although his name may be
connected in some Semitic languages to the word meaning ‘fire’ he
was not a fire god.
Ki - The Sumerian word for earth and was sometimes personified as
a goddess and female counterpart to An.
Lahmu - The name of a protective beneficent deity originally
associated with Enki/Ea, later associated with Marduk. Figurines
of this deity were used as foundation deposits to ward off demons
and sickness.
Lama (Lamassu) - A beneficent protective female deity which was
imagined in human form.
Lamastu - Now a demoness, she was once regarded a goddess. As
daughter of Anu (An) she was above the common run of evil demons.
Unlike other demons who followed the command of the gods when
doing evil, she practiced evil for its own sake. Her principal
victims were unborn and newly born babies, both miscarriage and
cot death (crib death) were attributed to her. She tries to touch
the woman’s stomach seven times to kill the baby, or kidnaps the
child from the wet nurse. Women wore an amulet of Pazuzu about
their necks to protect against her, evil against evil.
La-tarak and Lulal- Either Lulal is a Sumerian god and La-tarak
is an Akkadian name for the same deity, or the two gods were at
one time distinct but closely related. They were later always
paired and their figurines were buried at doorways to protect the
home. In a magical text they are listed as a protection against
witchcraft.
Lilitu - There were a male and two female lilitu and the
‘ardat-lili’ are a family of demons. They are not gods. They
haunt the desert and open country and are especially dangerous to
pregnant women and infants. The lilitu seems to be the female
equivalent, while the ardat-lili (whose name means maiden lilu)
seems to have the character of a frustrated bride, incapable of
normal sexual activity. Thus they were very
Lion-centaur- His figure was placed outside ablutions rooms,
where he fended off the attacks of the leonine demon
‘Mukil-res-lemutti’ or ‘Evil attendant’.
Lion-demon- A demon which in the Neo-Assrian and Neo-Babylonian
Periods, can be identified as the ‘ugallu, or big weather
creature’. A beneficent demon against evil demons and illnesses.
In some old seals he is a god known as ‘god with scimitar’ which
is probably the underworld god Nergal. Assoicated as the big
weather creature of Iskur.
Lion-dragon- A monster associated with Asakku (Asag) or the Anzu
(Imdugud) . A recent suggestion makes the creature sometimes the
(umu) na iru - ‘the roaring (weather beast)’ the animal of the
god Iskur.
Lion-humanoid- A figure associated with Samas/Utu who was used as
a protective figure. His Akkadian name seems to have been
uridimmu which could be translated as ‘mad lion’ or literally
‘mad canine’.
Lisin - The goddess who with her brother Asgi was worshipped in
the Sumerian cities of Adab and Kes. Her husband was Ninsikila
whose name would later be misinterpreted as a goddess’s name.
Lisin was sometimes worshipped as a mother goddess and called as
Mother Lisin. She is the name of a star, Lisin is a Scorpionis.
Lugalbanda- The great hero who was a defied king of the Sumerian
city of Uruk. His wife was the goddess Ninsun.
Lugal-irra and Meslamta-ea - A minor god whose name probably
means ‘mighty lord’ and was identified with Nergal in late
tradition. His twin was Meslamta-ea and they were worshipped
together at Kisiga, a town in northern Babylonia. They were
thought to stand at the entrance of the underworld ready to
dismember the dead as they entered. Thought to be efficacious in
guarding doorways. Astronimically they are represented by Gemini
(The Great Twins)
Mamu - Originally a Sumerian deity, one of several associated
with dreams (mamud being the word for dream). Mamu was sometimes
regarded as female a daughter of the god Utu and sometimes as
male and referred to as the god of dreams.
Marduk - The patronal god of the city of Babylon. His name means
‘bull calf of the sun’. Later on he was known simply as ‘Bel’
which means ‘Lord’. Son of Eniki/Ea, his wife was Sarpanitu and
occasionally the goddess Nanaya was treated as his wife. Nabu was
his son. He was a god of magic and wisdom, water and vegetation,
judgment and has a connection with the Sun god Samas/Utu. The
method of his worship has been compared to monotheism but it
never led to a denial of the existence of other gods , or to the
exclusion of female deities.
Martu (Amurru) - Akkadian god who destroys cities and rages over
the land like a storm, the son of An, who was sometimes said to
be the son of Ninhursaga. His wife was Belet-seri “Lady of the
Desert” or else Asratu. He represents a personification of the
nomadic peoples of the desert who were called by that name when
they at first appeared in that region.
Nabu - (biblical Nebo) the Mesopotamian scribe god, divine scribe
of the destinies and a patron god of writing. He later joined Ea
(Enki) and Marduk as a god of wisdom. Sometimes seen as Marduk’s
son. Sometimes identified with Ninurta who was associated with
irrigation and agriculture.
Nammu - Goddess who was considered in some traditions to have
given birth to An (heaven) and Ki (earth) and to many more of the
ancient gods. Regarded as the mother of Enki, she came to be
thought of as one of the ‘mother goddesses.
Namtar - A minor deity who acted as a minister of Ereskigal queen
of the underworld. In one tradition he was the son of Enlil and
Ninlil, while in another he was on of the demons of the nether
regions and a harbinger of death. In Sumerian ‘namtar’ meant
destiny or death.
Nanaya- A goddess who seems to have shared some of the sexual
aspects of Inana. She was worshipped along with her daughter
Kanisura and Inana of Uruk in a sort of trinity. Later her name
was used in cultic texts to denote little more than another
aspect of Inana/Istar.
Nanna-Suen (Sin)- Sumerian Moon God sometimes called Suen and
sometimes Nanna and sometimes he was called by both names. Nanna
was the son of Enlil and Ninlil, his wife was the goddess Ningal,
there children were Utu, the sun god, and the goddess Inana.
Nanse - The goddess of the city-state of Lagas in south-east
Sumer. Daughter of Enki, sister of Ningirsu (the local form of
Ninurta) and Nisaba in a parallel tradition. She was associated
with divination and the interpretation of dreams, and with birds
and fishes.
Nergal (Erra) - Originally the gods Nergal and Erra were separate
but later became so closely identified as to be combined. Nergal
was sometimes known as Meslamta-ea ‘he who comes forth from the
Meslam.’ Later he would be also identified with Lugal-irra.
Associated with the underworld and usually regarded as the
husband of Ereskigal ‘queen of the underworld.’ Other goddesses
sometimes considered his wife were; Las and Mamitu. He was
considered the son of Enlil and Ninlil, or else of Belet-ili.
Associated also with forest fires, fevers and plagues and
sometimes had a warrior like aspect.
Ninazu - God who was the son of the queen of the underworld
Ereskigal; he was also the father of Ningiszda. His connection
seems to be to the underworld. Worshipped at Esnunna but later
replaced by the god Tispak (the Hurrian storm god). There was
another Ninazu woshipped at Enegi, whose father was Enlil, he is
considered to be a different god.
Ningal - Goddess and wife of the god Nanna/Sin and mother of the
sun god Utu/Samas.
Ningirsu - The god whose name means ‘Lord of Girsu’, a god who
was the local form of the god Ninurta. Th emost prominent of the
local pantheon of the city-state of Lagas, where the town of
Girsu lay (modern Tello). Son of Enlil, husband of Bau and
brother of the goddesses Nanse and Nisaba. He defeats the bird
Anzu when it steals the tablet of destines from Enlil. A warrior
god who was also associated with the fruitfulness of cultivation
and vegetation, with the regulation of canals essential for
irrigation and with fecundity.
Ningiszida - Underworld deity, his name may etymologically mean
‘Lord of the Good Tree’. A guardian over demons who live in the
underworld. A personal protective deity of Ningirsu. He guards
the gate to the heaven of Anu (An), the highest heaven.
Ninhursaga - Sumerian name of the Mother Goddess who was known as
the ‘mother of the gods’ and thought to have been responsible for
many of the births of the gods and goddesses. Many human rulers
called her their mother also. Her name means ‘Lady of the
Mountain’. Identical with the goddess Ninmah, connected with the
city of Kes she is sometimes known as the Belet-ili of Kes or as
she of Kes.
Ninisina - Her name means ‘Lady of Isin’, she was the patronal
goddess of the Sumerian city of that name. Daughter of the
goddess Uras, her husband was Pabilsag and her son Damu. Her
epithet was ‘great doctor of the black-headed (human beings)’ ,
and like her son, associated with healing. Compared with Inana
and sometimes known as ‘great daughter of An’ and other epithets
proper to Inana. She is identical with Gula.
Ninlil (Mullissu) - Goddess and wife of the god Enlil. Likely
that she was an artificially created deity since the prefix of
her name ‘nin’ means lady, but deified to provide a proper wife
for her important god husband. Often called ‘mother’, ‘merciful
mother’ and so on, and may have been a form of mother goddess.
She interceded on behalf of mortals to her husband.
Ninmah - Goddess midwife to Nammu when Nammu created mankind.
Ninmah was also the name of a constellation.
Ninsun - A goddess whose name means ‘lady wildcow’ her cult
associated with cattle. Wife of the deified hero Lugalbanda. They
were the parents of Gilgames and she would interpret his dreams.
Ninsubur (god) - A minor male deity who functioned as a minister
to An. He was also thought to be the god Papsukkal who functioned
as a minister to the gods in general.
Ninsubur (goddess) - A minor female deity who functioned as a
minister to Inana.
Ninurta - A god whose worship reaches back to very ancient Sumer.
A son of Enlil. His wife was Gula, though sometimes he was
associated with Ningirsu and his wife was Bau. He was a war god
and is the god’s champion against the Anzu bird (Imdugud). He
also had the role as a farmer god..
Nisaba - A grain goddess. Daughter of An and Uras who became a
goddess of writing, accounting and scribal knowledge. She was
also regarded as a daughter of Enlil and sister of Ningirsu. The
god Haya was her husband. Sometimes identified with the goddess
Nanibgal.
Numusda - A god especially associated with the town of Kazallu in
northern Babylon. Son of Nanna who may have been a storm god.
Nungal - Goddess and daughter of Ereskigal and a deity fo the
underworld. Birtum son of Enlil was her husband.
Nusku - Son of and minister of Enlil. God of fire and light and
sometimes the fire god Gibil is described as his son. Nusku is
the god called upon to assist in the burning of sorcerers and
witches. Worshipped at Harran in north-west Syria.
Pabilsag - Son of Enlil and husband of Ninisina. God of the city
of Larag. Astronomically his is the constellation we know as
Sagittarius.
Palm-tree-King - One of the monsters conquered by the warrior god
Ninurta/Ningirsu. He was probably a minor deity of the Lagas
region.
Pazuzu - King of the wind demons and a demonic god. He is
represented with a canine face with abnormally bulging eyes, a
scaly body, a snake headed penis, the talons of a bird and wings.
Often thought of as an evil underworld demon, but seems to have
played a beneficent role as protector against pestilential winds
(especially the west wind). He protected pregnant women from the
evil Lamastu who would steal their babies from their wombs. The
women wore his amulet around their necks for protection against
her.
Qingu - The god who was chief of Tiamat’s military forces and her
champion. Described as Tiamat’s lover. After his execution by
Marduk, mankind was made from the slain god’s blood.
Samana - A demon with a lion’s mouth, dragon’s teeth, eagle’s
claws and the tail of a scorpion. The name seems to be associated
with a grain disease probably spread via insect.
Sarpanitu - Goddess of the city of Babylon and wife of Marduk.
Worshipped by the name Eura as a goddess of childbirth. Her name
likely means ‘she of Sarpan, which was probably a village but is
as yet unlocated..
Scorpion-people - A supernatural being with a horned cap of
divinity, human head with beard, human body, the hindquarters and
talons of a bird, a snake headed penis, and a scorpion’s tale. He
may or may not have wings. Attendants of Samas (Utu) and by the
Neo-Assyrian Period, powerful protectors against demons. They
were said to be both male and female but no female representation
in art has been found.
Seven demons - The Seven is the name given to a group of demons,
the offspring of An and Ki, who act as assistants to the god
Nergal (Erra). One collection of magical incantations seems to
identify the Seven with seven named evil udugs, sometimes also
called ‘Seven and seven’ or ‘Seven times seven’
Seven gods - ‘the Seven’ is a name given to a beneficent group of
gods whose power can be harnessed against evil demons by means of
magical incantations. They may be identical with the seven
children of Ishara and are sometimes named as (Seven and seven)
together with another group who may be the seven sons of
Enmesarra. They are symbolized by the seven dots and sometimes as
the seven stars or as we know them, the Pleiades (constellation).
Seven sages - Seven wise men who lived before the time of the
flood, named for the seven cities from which they come. The seven
sages are credited with building the walls of Uruk.
Siduri - Goddess, proprietress of the ale-house at the world’s
edge.
Smiting god - The ‘smiting’ position is the posture in which one
would weild certain weapons. Although this god has not been
identified with any named god, he may represent the god Lulal.
Sakkan - Son of he sun god Samas (Utu) protector of the wild
animals, sometimes seen as a shepherd. Responsible for fertility
in wild animals.
Sala - She is likely to have been a goddess of the Hurrians
originally and entered the Mesopotamian world as the wife of Adad
(Iskur) or as the wife of Dagan. Girra is said to be the son of
Sala.
Sara - God of the Sumerian city of Umma. His epithet ‘Hero of An’
suggests that he was a warrior god.
Serida (Aya) - A goddess of light, consort of Utu/Samas the sun
god. Associated with Sexual love and fruitfulness.
Sul-pa-e - A god whose name means “brilliant youth”. Not a young
god at all but husband of the Mother Goddess Ninhursaga with whom
he fathered three children, Asgi, Lisin and Lil. Offerings were
made to Sul-pa-e in the underworld in one poem and he was later
associated with demons. Sul-pa-e was one of many names of the
planet Jupiter.
Tiamat - A creator goddess whose name is a form of the word
tiamtum which means, sea. She was split into by Qingu to form the
world.
Tispak - Seems to be identical with the god Tesup who was a storm
god. Tispak was a local god of the city of Esnunna in the
Akkadian Period or early on in the Old Babylonian Period. A
warrior god his epithet being ‘Lord Of Armies’.
Undug (utukku) - A term for a particular type of demon they can
be either benevolent or malevolent.
Umu dabrutu - Meaning ‘violent storms’ this is the name of one,
or one of the species of the eleven monsters created by Tiamat.
Uras (god) - God of the city of Dilbat, an ancestor of An.
Identified with An or Ninurta.
Uras (goddess) - In some traditions the wife of An. Her name
means ‘earth’ but according to other traditions An’s wife is Ki
which means ‘earth’ in Sumerian. Mother of the goddesses Ninisina
and Nisaba.
Uttu - Sumerian goddess of weaving, sometimes as a spider
associated with spinning her web because of the way her symbol
appears.
Utu (Samas)- Sumerian sun god, Akkadian name Samas. Son of Nanna
the moon god, brother of Inana. Sometimes made the brother of Anu
(An) or of Enlil. His wife was Serida (Aya). He is described as
bearded and long-armed. As the sun sees all, he came to be
regarded also as the god of truth, justice and right, destroyer
of evil, and a warrior. Protector of kings.
Zababa - God of the city Kis, husband of Inana/Istar, he appears
to have been a warrior god. Described as the Marduk of battle.
